The Bermuda Under-17 women’s team returned home to a rapturous reception last night after securing qualification to the final round of the Concacaf World Cup qualifiers.

When the team emerged from the arrivals section at LF Wade International Airport, minus captain Jayla Peets Butterfield and vice-captain Evans Welch, a horde of excited Bermudians were there to welcome them home.

Bermuda finished runners-up to Puerto Rico in group A and were officially confirmed as one of the two best second-placed teams when the qualifiers concluded on Saturday.

The team now have weeks to prepare for a trip to Mexico for the Concacaf Championship, which runs from March 21 to April 6, and from which three teams will earn the right to represent the region at the Fifa Under-17 Women's World Cup in Morocco.

Coach Gary Adams applauded his players for their performance in the qualifiers.

“I’m humbled by all the work they did and they were rewarded,” Adams told The Royal Gazette. “They deserve everything that they have achieved.

“But with that, there is even more pressure because the second round is going to be tougher. We can’t make as many mistakes, the requirements are going to be harder and they will need to be a lot fitter.

“The demands that are going to be put on them are going to be tenfold. As much as it’s a joy, we need to come back and hit the drawing board again and plan for the next seven weeks.

“The altitude is going to play a part, so the girls have to be more technical. Realistically for the next seven weeks we’ll just be focusing on technical development and fitness.

“We need to get better on the ball and possess the ball better. The teams in the next round will keep the ball and any mistakes we make, we’ll get punished.”

With the weighted points system used by Concacaf to determine the best two runners-up from the six groups, Adams and the players endured nervous moments on Saturday night while in transit. It was only at the end of the matches in Dominican Republic and Nicaragua that it became clear that they had qualified.

“We were anxious because we didn’t understand how the weighting system was working,” the coach said.

“We were all over the place because of what the announcers were saying. It was probably the longest 15 minutes of my life when Nicaragua took the lead against Jamaica, but it was great when the final whistle went. It was pure jubilation.”

On Friday, Bermuda were seconds away from securing top spot in the group, conceding with the last kick of the game.

“It’s such a cruel game but such a beautiful game, depending on which side of the coin you are,” Adams said.

“Seeing the excitement in Puerto Rico’s faces shows how much of a battle we gave them. They had to work for that; it shows that we can keep fighting and that’s something I told the girls.’’

Janiya Sealey spoke of the nerves she experienced after she made a perfectly timed tackle to deny Puerto Rico’s Jaeda Russell in the 53rd minute. The defensive midfielder was not at the stadium when her team conceded, as she had been taken off to hospital after sustaining a blow to the head.

“We were so excited when we found out that we had qualified because we really worked hard as a team,” the 15-year-old said.

“I was very scared when I made that tackle against Puerto Rico. She [Russell] had beaten my defence and I had to sprint to get back, so I just had to make sure it was a clean tackle because it was in the box.”

Milan Gibbons-Thomas was one of Bermuda’s shining stars in the qualifiers, scoring two goals and providing an assist.

“We had a heart-warming moment as a team when we found out that we had qualified,” the 14-year-old said. “Everybody was congratulating us and we had accomplished our mission.

“It was hard accepting the loss to Puerto Rico, but we put our trust in God and it all worked out in the end.

“We now have to mentally prepare ourselves to think that we’re going into a competition ready to win, or it won’t happen. Physically, we’ll try our best at training to put on the best performance on the field when it matters the most.”

Keyandae Lightbourne, one of the senior players in the team, is seeking to gain more exposure with the under-20 side before going to Mexico. The midfielder scored one goal and also provided an assist in Puerto Rico.

“I’m excited because this is my first year as the oldest member of the age group,” the 16-year-old said.

“Taking the loss against Puerto Rico, knowing that we never want to feel like that again really brings us together as a group. Having to sit back and watch all the other games to see if we had the chance to qualify was really nerve-racking.

“Most of us have played against countries like Canada when we were younger. We have this hunger to beat them that not everybody sees.

“I'm going away to Trinidad with the under-20s before we go to Mexico. We’re playing Canada in that qualifier, so just to see where they are is something I’m really looking forward to in trying to get better as a player.”

Owen Darrell, the sports minister, was at the airport to welcome the team and commended the players for the sacrifices they made for the island.

“For them to take two weeks off school was a great commitment for them,” Darrell said.

“To juggle school, training and participating in the tournament is a lot, especially for the under-17 group. If my schedule allows, I’ll go and watch them in Mexico because they’ll be playing against some of the bigger nations in the region.”